The Extremely Inconvenient Adventures of Bronte Mettlestone

~ rachelbenzine ~ 2 Comments

Review:

When she is ten years old, Bronte Mettlestone finds out that her parents were killed by pirates. This doesn’t upset her that much, as she has never met them. She was raised by her Aunt Isabelle and the Butler. However, her parents left a faery-cross-stitched will that binds her to go on a journey. She must deliver presents to each one of her father’s ten other sisters (since they left Aunt Isabelle her gift of cloudberry tea when they deposited Bronte on her doorstep as a baby). So begins her voyage, though which she will eat oranges from one aunt’s orchard, ride a dragon at another’s dragon hospital, encounter water sprites and elves, accidentally start an avalanche, and perhaps rescue a Kingdom from an evil King.

The Extremely Inconvenient Adventures of Bronte Mettlestone is eight-year-old-me’s dream book, and is one of twenty-six-year-old-me’s favorite books that I’ve read in the last year. There’s adventure and fun and friendships and magic, which creates an engrossing volume that will thrill middle-grade readers. I cannot recommend this book too highly. Go get it, right now.

Favorite Passage:

“Why did you come on the journey?” Sebastian asked suddenly. “I know the faery cross-stitch would destroy Gainsleigh if you didn’t come, so is that why? Is it because you love Gainsleigh?”
“Your question shows an extreme lack on insight,” I said. “Of course I love Gainsleigh. It’s my home! I love the harbor and the Botanical Gardens and the cobblestone streets lined with gardenia trees! Not lobelia, you see. But that is beside the point. Even if I did not know a town — even if I hated it! — I would not want to be the cause of its buildings and bridges crashing down!”
After a moment, Sebastian asked his parents what an extreme lack of insight meant.
“It means you asked a daft question,” Uncle Josh told him.
– Chapter 12

What I Loved Most:

Moriarty writes with this poetic, lovely, flowery language that is a spell in and of itself. She is truly an artist, crafting a splendid world that abounds in delight and cheer. It’s not that everything in the book is all sunshine and happiness — the very premise of the book is based on a child’s parents dying. But the way that Moriarty chooses to express herself is lavish and sumptuous while also remaining accessible to younger readers.

Read this book if you like:

Adventures, magic, feeling as if you’re close friends with book characters

Book Details:

Marked By Love

~ rachelbenzine ~ Leave a comment

Review:

In John 13:35, Jesus says, “By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” The one thing that should define followers of Jesus is their radical, life-changing, it-makes-no-sense kind of love. However, today’s Christians often seem to be known less for their radical love and more for what they’re against. Marked by Love is Stevens’ call to the church back to a life in which love is the default. He examines the theme of love that wound its way through the life of Jesus, as well as through the rest of the Bible.

Oh, dear friends, how I loved this book. So often, American Christians are swept up in the us-versus-them, conservative-versus-liberal, white-versus-everyone-else drama that typifies the rest of American culture. Marked by Love is both rich in Biblical theology and practical application. Most chapters start with a story from Stevens’ life before moving into a discussion of Biblical truth and an application for daily living. This is a book you will highlight and mark up and refer back to time and time again.

Favorite Passage:

Now Jesus looked directly into her eyes. He saw everything she had ever done. He immediately knew every detail of her life. She looked back, and she knew that He knew. She didn’t know how He knew, but she was sure He knew. And yet, He looked at her with such grace and love and acceptance. The words He spoke to Simon were for Simon, but they were for her as well. He didn’t talk about the men she’d been with, the unspeakable acts she had done, or the places she’d done them. He didn’t suggest that she probably got the perfume as a gift from one of her many “clients.” None of that came up. He just looked at her with the most caring and loving eyes she had ever seen—and in those eyes she saw no want or lust or disapproval. As she gazed, wanting to turn away but unable, she was sure she would never forget those eyes.
–Chapter 13 (As a commentary on the story in Luke 7 when the woman poured perfume on Jesus’ feet.)

What I Loved Most:

In my experience, most Christian Living books tend to either advocate for holiness (which seems so often to take the form of judgment, condemnation, and self-righteousness) OR radical love (which seems so often to imply that sin isn’t a big deal, that Christians aren’t to be set apart, and that we can live as the world lives). Stevens does a great job of both advocating for holiness and for love, for being a light on the hill while demonstrating the crazy love of Jesus to everyone we encounter. He is humble and genuine. He doesn’t set himself up as a teacher who knows better than you – rather, he portrays himself as a fellow imperfect journeyman, trying his best to honor God in every aspect of his life.

Read this book if you like:

Genuine faith, theology, application of faith to real life, being pushed to reconsider the way you live your life

Book Details:

The House in Poplar Wood

~ rachelbenzine ~ 1 Comment

Review:

Lee and Felix are brothers who live unusual lives. Their mother is Memory’s apprentice, and their father is Death’s apprentice. Lee helps his mother as she helps Memory, and Felix helps his father as he helps Death. An Agreement set by the two Shades (Memory and Death) binds Lee, Felix, and their parents to the work. Enter Gretchen, a girl who Lee goes to school with. She’s convinced that her classmate, Essie, didn’t die of an accidental death – instead, Gretchen thinks Death overstepped his boundaries and caused Essie to die. Gretchen, Lee, and Felix work together to figure out why and how Essie died, and they hope to break the Agreement in the process.

I got this book as an Advanced Reader’s Copy shortly before its release last fall from the publisher, Chronicle books. I started reading it on a Saturday, and finished it Sunday evening. Ormsbee has one of my favorite writing styles of all time; her series The Water and the Wild is one of my favs, and I’ll have to do a review of it soon. She paints vivid pictures with her words, but with a subtlety that draws you in. The House in Poplar Wood is not overly scary for any kids reading, but there are a couple sections closer to the end that are haunting enough that I wouldn’t recommend this for kids younger than 5th grade or so. It’s absolutely perfect for middle schoolers – and us adults who enjoy beautifully written and unique stories!

Favorite Passage:

But the memories of Love and of People — there was no rule to their labeling. They were equal parts “Remember” and “Forget”. Some precious, to be cherished. Some rotten, to be put away. And they were the only jars Lee was ever asked to relabel. Patients would return, begging to never remember former friends whose memories they once wished to preserve, while others asked to reclaim memories of love they once thought they did not want anymore.
— Chapter 6: Lee

What I Loved Most:

It seems like there aren’t many books coming out nowadays with a completely original premise. Many stories are retellings or tweaks of stories that have already been told. The House in Poplar Wood is absolutely unique. This is a world where Death and Memory aren’t just concepts, but actual beings. I was captivated after reading the Prologue, where  we first meet Lee and Felix and see the different tasks each is assigned. And as a side note, I’m a sucker for a good font, and the Hightower used in my copy of this book is to die for.

Read this book if you like:

Autumn, unusual family structures, spooky stories, mystery

Book Details: